Understanding The War In Ukraine
Through the course of the past month, Europe and the world alike have watched in awe as major armed conflict unfolds across Ukraine. To preface this post, I encourage all readers to embrace, uplift, and support marginalized and displaced people around the world, not just those from Ukraine.
Origins of Conflict
The images of destruction, death, and chaos seemingly define the conflict in Ukraine as of now, but the conflict between Russia, Ukraine, and the West was not always like this. For many Ukrainians, this supposed “special military operation” led by Russian President Vladamir Putin is not only a battle for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Ukrainian state, but a battle over the existence of the Ukrainian identity. Which currently runs the risk of being enveloped by the Russian war machine. Putin has several motivating factors in his decision to invade, but the potential admittance of Ukraine to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) remains the primary concern given Putin believes it poses an existential threat to his nation (Aleem). Moreover, some American political analysts fear that Putin’s incursion into Ukraine won’t be limited to Ukraine and may eventually spill into former states belonging to the Soviet Union, citing his desire for regional hegemony.
While clear that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine violates many facets of international law, there is some truth to the Russian President’s claims of historical and cultural ties between the two nations. While the history of Ukraine and Russia is expansive, I wish to focus on the past 30 years since the collapse of the USSR. Following the collapse of the USSR in 1991, Ukrainians voted for independence for the second time in just over a year. In subsequent years Ukraine was caught between the awesome influence of both the West and the former Soviet Republic and decided to rid itself of its nuclear capabilities. The denuclearization of Ukraine in 1994 under the Budapest Memorandum, provided the basis for security agreements between Russia, the US, the UK and Ukraine, guaranteeing territorial integrity and sovereignty for the recognized borders of Ukraine (Sullivan).
Shifts In Political Climate
With the onset of the 21st century, the Ukrainian political atmosphere radically shifted towards greater political insecurity, corruption, and even instances of foul play at the highest levels of government. This volatile political atmosphere was ripe for political violence, which ultimately broke out in November of 2013, with the Maidan revolution and the annexation of Crimea in eastern Ukraine. Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was on the verge of signing a free trade agreement with the EU, but backed out at the last minute citing Russian pressure. Ultimately, thousands of Ukrainians would occupy Maidan square in protest, only to be massacred by the Yanukovych government. The roughly 100 protesters who were killed sparked widespread outcry and resulted in Yanukovych’s impeachment. Russia understood Yanukovych’s impeachment to be an undemocratic coup and ordered Russian soldiers into Ukrainian territory in Crimea. By March of 2014 Putin had announced the successful annexation of Crimea to the Russian government.
With the presence of over 40 thousand Russian troops on its Eastern border, pro-Russian separatists attacked both the Donetsk and the Luhansk region, and ultimately formed two independent Republics, though they lack international recognition from much of the Western world. These independent republics have been the site of ongoing fighting against the Ukrainian army since 2014, with over 14,000 casualties in these regions (Al Jazeera). This now brings us to more recent times, where the world no longer recognizes Ukraine as a coveted tourist attraction and cultural destination, but looks to it with an almost morbid fascination and pity concerning the uncertain future of democracy in Eastern Europe. The potential for conflict became exceedingly clear in the last months of 2021 as the world witnessed through satellite and other advanced imagery, the great accumulation of both Russian hardware and troops at its border with Ukraine, and in neighboring Belarus. January and February of this year mark the beginning of serious diplomatic efforts to thwart Russian aggression, given the well warranted reluctance of NATO and foreign leaders to commit to a military conflict with the world’s foremost nuclear power.
What Now?
As the Russian advance faces greater and greater resistance from both the military, and civilian populations in Ukraine, the world watches with great fear, anticipation, and hope that the Ukrainian nation will prevail. What is most striking to me about the resurgence of armed conflict on the European continent, is not the brutality and abhorrent nature of war, but the divergent levels of support and respect endowed to the Ukrainian people, to those who are suffering. War (as the cliche goes) is hell, we all know this. Yet the outcry and demand for the cessation of hostilities are limited in the public imagination and in the media to Ukraine, and Ukraine only. There is no public outcry or demand for securing the human rights of Palestinians living under Israeli apartheid, no widespread support for Afghan refugees fleeing a country destabilized by American military aggression, and no mention of the countless refugees and civilian casualties of conflicts not located in the heart of Europe. While supporting our Ukrainian allies is integral to our political and moral aspirations as a nation, it is just as imperative that we dedicate our resources and attention to people and places that have been denied the humanity we have afforded Ukraine.
In celebration of St. Patrick’s Day I leave you all with this quote (as it applies to the Ukrainian situation), “Many suffer so that some day all Irish people may know justice and peace”- Theobald Wolfe Tone
Sources:
(Sullivan)https://www.npr.org/2022/02/12/1080205477/history-ukraine-russia
(Al Jazeera) https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/21/donetsk-and-lugansk-heres-what-we-know-about-rebel-regions
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